ulie Driscoll’s look at the long-term effects of the Komen Foundation’s ill-advised decision to strip its funding for Planned Parenthood for what were rather obviously political reasons, led this week’s LA Progressive 10 Most Read articles list.

Julie Driscoll: Komen is between a rock and a hard place: Fund Planned Parenthood and the anti-choice zealots breathe fire; de-fund it and progressives who’ve firmly supported its cause withdraw support and trash it on Facebook and Twitter and blogs.

Mario Solis-Marich: Organized labor has never found itself as united as it is at this moment in our country’s history. However the right has never found itself with so much access to funding dedicated to breaking unions.

Tina Dupuy: What Planned Parenthood really does is keep poor people out of emergency rooms. The clinics treat people with or without insurance for ranges of health issues. Yes, low-cost community clinics save taxpayers’ money. Lots.

Tracy Emblem: California taxpayers should carefully consider the cost-benefit analysis, because when we cut public funding for these institutions, we cut our state’s economic advantage and future prosperity.

Randy Shaw: As mayors, developers and Agency staff try to fend off Governor Brown’s proposed transfer of redevelopment funds to local governments – earning far more media coverage than cuts to programs serving more vulnerable Californians – little has been said about the fundamentally undemocratic nature of redevelopment agencies.

Wendy Block: The Citizens United decision doesn’t address the homeland of donors. So what would stop multi-national companies or even foreign countries from procuring such potential winners as Sharron Angle, Joe Miller, or Christine O’Donnell? Who are the people/corporations behind these mysterious ads? Could Osama bin Laden be a donor? After all, the Supreme Court did rule in favor of free speech for all money.

Rep. Pete Stark: The idea of a financial speculation tax is getting consideration in many corners of the world, and not a moment too soon. When the UN Summit kicks off next week, an international financial speculation tax to fund the Millennium Development Goals should be at the top of the agenda.

Wayne Williams: With Voter Owned, Auditable, Transparent and Verifiable Elections, voters will come out in larger numbers as they have more confidence in their government. More viable candidates of all races and genders will run for office, and most likely the cost of elections will go down because the public will be more educated, involved and aware.

LGBT Rights

Irene Monroe: Long before June officially became Gay Pride Month, and October “Coming Out Month” for the LGBTQ community, Halloween was unofficially our yearly celebrated “holiday,” dating as far back at the 1970s when it was a massive annual street party in San Francisco’s Castro district.

The Middle East

Richard Greeman: Anti-government demonstrations spread across Morocco after social media spread the story of Mousine Fikri, a fishmonger crushed to death inside a garbage truck as he tried to block the destruction of a truckload of his fish confiscated by police.